Apparatus for making bisulfite liquor.



G. A. STEBBINS.

APPARATUS FOR MAKING BISULFITE LIQUOR.

APPLICATION FILED AUG-3|- I915.

Lw fimo Patented May1,1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

Witnesses entor 1 7? 2" V 7ZZ7WM by v V 1 Va a Attorneys G. A. STEBBINS.

APPARATUS FOR MAKING BISULFITE LIQUOR.

APPLICATION FILED AUG-31.1915.

1,224,5?% Patented May 1, 1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

n eras GEORGE ALFRED STEBBINS, OF WATERTOWN, NEW YORK.

APPARATUS FOR MAKING BISULFITE LIQUOR- Specification of Letterslatent.

Patented May 11, 1911?.

Application filed August 31, 1915. Serial No. 48,263.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE A. S'rEBBINs,

a citizen of the United States, residing at Watertown, in the county of Jefferson and State of New York, have invented a new One of the objects of the invention is to provide means whereby a thorough mixing of a basic solution and the sulfur dioxid (S0 is eflected, thus to produce a liquor containing considerable mono-sulfite in suspension.

A further object is to provide means whereby the mono-sulfite liquor is cooled and then discharged over an extensive absorbing surface whereby the liquor more readily absorbs the sulfur dioxid and a clear and strong bisulfite liquor is obtained regardless of weather conditions and with a low percentage of lime.

It is welllmown to those skilled in the art that unless bisulfite liquor is .clear, considerable trouble will be experienced by the precipitation of lime within pipes and upon 'the bottoms of the digesters or cooking vessels. Consequently it is of the utmost importance to reduce the amount of lime to the minimum. V

A further object of the invention is to provide apparatus from which none of the gas is wasted and which consequently effects a saving in sulfur.

A still further object is to provide apparatus requiring a much lower vacuum than has heretofore been necessary in apparatus working upon the same principle.

With the foregoing andother objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed, can be made within the scope of what is claimed, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings the preferred form of the invention has been shown.

In said drawings Figure 1 is an elevation of the apparatus.

Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof.

Fig. 3 is a section on line A-B Fig. 2, a

.portion of the apparatus being broken away.

Referring to the figures by characters of reference 1 designates the agitating compartment of the apparatus and directly adjacent thereto is the absorption compartment 2, both of these compartments being lined with suitable acid-proof material. Arranged within the agitating compartment are superposed baffies 3 disposed in staggered relation whereby gas within the compartment is caused to follow a sinuous path. A shaft 4 extends downwardly into the compartment 1 and through the baflies 3 and secured to this shaft below and close to each of the baflles are agitating arms 5. Thus it will be seen that as the gas ascends-within the compartment 1, it will be acted upon by these agitating arms so that a thorough commingling of the liquor with gas admitted to the compartment, will result. Shaft 4 may be driven in any manner desired and in the drawings it has been shown journaled within a bearing member 6 on the compartment 1 and provided with a gear 7 receiving motion, through a gear 8, from a shaft 9 to which is secured a pulley 10.

Arranged adjacent the agitating compartment 1 is an overflow box 11 communicating with the bottom portion of compartment 1 through a pipe 12 which extends upwardly over one wall of the box 11 and thence downwardly into the box. An outflow pipe 13 extends from the overflow box 11 to a pump 14 which may be driven in any manner desired, as by means of a shaft 15 to which is secured a pulley 16. A valve 17 is preferably arranged in the outflow pipe 13 and is controlled by afloat 18 arranged in the overflow box 11, this float operating to close the valve when the liquor within the overflow box falls below a predetermined level;

A pipe 19 extends from the pum'p'14 to a cooling coil 20 mounted preferably above the compartment 1, the upper convolution of this coil merging into a discharge pipe 21 which opens downwardly through the top of the absorption compartment 2.

A gas conducting pipe 22 extends from the top of the absorption compartment and downwardly to branch pipes 23 which open into the bottom portion of the compartment 1. A normally closed man-hole 24 is pro vided in one wall of the compartment 1 to permit ready inspection of the interior of said compartment. A suction pipe 26 extends from the top of compartment 1 to an exhaust fan, not shown.

The absorption compartment is provided, at a point above the bottom thereof, with a grate 27 designed to support wooden blocks, bricks, stones or other like material 28 which serves to break up the descending liquor into a spray or mist, thus providing an ideal condition for readily absorbing the ascending gas. A bafile 29 is preferably arranged above the material 28 and in line of the liquor discharged downwardly from the pipe 21, this plate constituting a spreading means.

A gas supply pipe 30 opens into the lower portion of the compartment 2 and extending from the lower portion of said compartment at the bottom thereof is an outflow pipe'31 discharging into a receiver 32 for the bisulfite liquor. A pump indicated generally at 33 may be employed for withdrawing the liquor from the receiver 32 and directing it to an acid storage tank or the like, not shown. 7

In using the apparatus a suction is set up through the pipe 26 with the result that the gas supplied to pipe 30 will be caused to enter the bottom portion of the absorption compartment and flow upwardly through said compartment to the pipe 22 through which it will descend through the pipes 23 to the bottom of compartment 1. The basic solution is supplied continually to the compartment 1 through an inlet 34 and it will thus be obvious that as the gas is drawn into the bottom portion of compartment 1 it'will rise within said compartment and through the basic solution, following a sinuous-course between the bafiies 3. At each of the several stages in the path of the ascending gas it is met by the rotating agitating arms which thus operate to thoroughly commingle the gas and the basic solution with the result that a liquor containing considerable monosulfite in suspension, is produced. This mono-sulfite liquor gradually flows from the compartment 1 through the pipe 12 to the overflow box 11 from which it is withdrawn by the pump 14 and forced through the cooling coil 20. The cooled mono-sulfite liquor is discharged downwardly into the absorption compartment 2 and is spread over and passes down through the contents of the compartment 2. The liquor here meets the ascending sulfur dioxid (S0 and is gradually strengthened until the liquor finally flows into the receiver 32 in the form of bisulfite liquor which can be forced to an acid storage tank, not shown.

It has been found that apparatus such as herein described requires but a very low.

vacuum in order to efiectthe proper circulation of the gas, this being due primarily to the fact that only a four foot or five foot head of liquor is usually contained within the compartment 1. Furthermore by cooling the mono-sulfite liquor prior to directing it into the absorption compartment, it has been found that the absorption of gas is more readily effected than heretofore and, due to the thorough agitation of the mixture in the compartment 1 and the thorough spreading and absorption of the liquor and gas within the compartment 2, the combining of the liquid and gas is rendered so efficient that the resultant bisulfite liquor is strong and clear, irrespective of weather conditions and contains but a very low percentage of lime.

What is claimed is Apparatus for making bisulfite liquor including an absorption compartment, a receiver for bisulfite liquor in communication with the bottom of the absorption compartment, means for directing gas into the hottomportion of the absorption compartment,

an agitating compartment, a suction pipe 6X- tending from the upper portion of said agitating compartment, means for conveying gas from the upper portion of the absorption compartment to the lower portion of the agitating compartment, an overflow receptacle in communication with the lower por tion of the agitating compartment, means for maintaining the contents of the overflow receptacle substantially at a predetermined level, means for directing a basic solution into the upper portion of the agitating compartment, a cooling coil discharging into the GEORGE ALFRED STEBBINS.

Witnesses:

F. E. KENNEDY, M.-VAN DEUSEN. 

